Chapter 31

Ms. Parker had run out of things to say. She looked from one brother to the other with something approaching alarm.

She'd heard that the Whitmore brothers spoiled Vivian. Hannah, rather. But surely it had never been quite this peculiar.

Did both of them always turn into such fools over their little sister?

Adrian noticed nothing. Ellie's handwriting really was beautiful. His own letters wandered wherever they pleased, every stroke going its own way. Thank goodness she hadn't learned from him.

He took several more pictures from above, added a filter, and happily posted them to his friends-only feed.

Normally, being incapable of keeping anything to himself, he posted about once a day. Since coming home, that had become several times a day, all about Ellie. Anyone who hadn't muted him by now was a true friend.

Adrian: My little sister's handwriting. Can any of you do better? 😏😏

Within minutes, more than a dozen people had liked it. Celebrity friends who knew him well fell into line with thumbs-up emojis and admiring replies.

One comment broke the pattern.

Manager: Seriously, what's gotten into you lately?

Every day, something about his sister. She was so sweet. She was so pretty. She'd gone to school and he was bored because nobody was there to play with him.

The manager typed out a second question.

Manager: Has your sister put a spell on you? 🤔

Adrian had been enjoying all the compliments on Ellie's behalf. At that, his face fell.

He deleted the comment, opened the manager's contact card, and tapped Block.

Still waiting for a reply, the manager watched the post disappear. Then Adrian disappeared from the contact list altogether.

What???

By the time the brothers finally finished admiring the notebook, Ms. Parker felt entitled to a sigh. She repeated what she'd been trying to say about helping Elise improve her studies.

“Of course, I'll need your cooperation at home. A child's education isn't entirely up to the child. The family's attitude matters, too.”

Julian frowned slightly.

“And if her grades don't improve?”

In his previous life, Ellie's grades had always been ordinary. She had still grown into a good person. And from what he'd seen since coming back, she seemed to love studying. Ms. Parker apparently wanted them to push her harder at home, but pushing meant putting pressure on her.

He would be delighted if she did well. If she didn't, that was fine, too. He wanted her to be happy. As her older brother, he could take care of her future.

“Then there's a real possibility she'll move down to a regular course group after the next placement assessment,” Ms. Parker said earnestly.

Adrian raised his eyebrows. “What's wrong with a regular group?”

He meant it. Some people's talents lay elsewhere. His certainly had. If Ellie wanted to do something, he would support her. She didn't have to become the top student.

Ms. Parker stared at them. Families were supposed to be worried when their children's grades slipped. Why did these two seem to have an entirely different understanding of the situation?

“But surely,” she said, “you want to support her education?”

Julian adjusted his glasses.

“What would improving her grades achieve?”

“A better academic record, of course. A place at a good college. Better prospects for finding a good job afterward.”

“And the purpose of finding a job?”

Ms. Parker stopped.

To earn money. What else?

But did Elise's family need money? Her backpack alone was worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. Even if she moved to a regular group and went to an ordinary college, she was hardly going to be destitute.

Seeing that she understood, Julian spoke again.

“If Ellie's grades aren't good, we're all right with that. We'd like her to grow up happy, without feeling under constant pressure.”

If he could give her a comfortable, carefree life, he would ask for nothing more.

He inclined his head, courteous and sincere.

“I'm sorry we can't give you quite the answer you'd hoped for. But thank you. You take your responsibilities seriously, and I'm glad Ellie has a teacher like you.”

Under his steady gaze, Ms. Parker lowered her eyes. Her cheeks warmed.

“You're... you're welcome.”

Elise might move to another group before long. She might cease to be Ms. Parker's student. Until that happened, however, Ms. Parker intended to do her job.

When Elise reached the classroom, the bell for the next lesson had just rung. She appeared in the doorway, and every conversation stopped. Faces turned toward her.

She went to her seat, puzzled.

Usually, people in this class treated her as though she didn't exist. Now she kept catching them looking at her. Whenever she raised her head, their eyes darted away.

It went on for the rest of the school day.

With sports day approaching, the class had been assigned a thorough cleanup that week. After lessons, it was her group's turn to stay behind. Everyone else was free to leave.

She and Nora were responsible for the classroom desks and chairs. Once they wiped them down, they had to carry them into the corridor to let the damp surfaces dry, then bring everything back in. For two girls, that was going to take some effort.

Elise had barely reached for a desk when a voice cut in beside her.

“I've got it.”

Logan and several other boys who played basketball were standing there.

Avoiding her eyes, Logan lifted the desk she'd been about to move and carried it out. Another boy took the desk Nora was struggling with.

Elise watched them, bewildered. They weren't even in the cleanup group.

“What are you doing?” she asked.

After being shut out for so long, she found it difficult to take this sudden helpfulness at face value. Was it some new way of making trouble for them?

The boys had all the desks and chairs out in almost no time. Then they looked at one another until somebody shoved Logan forward.

He scratched his head.

“We owe you an apology. We listened to Vivian. I mean, Hannah. She said you were nasty, that you were turning her brothers against her. We believed it. We were the ones making all that noise about getting you out of the class.”

So that was it.

On her first morning, she'd heard people loudly demanding that somebody be thrown out. They'd meant her. These had been the boys leading it, and Vivian had been behind it.

“Oh,” Elise said. “Now I understand.”

Logan stole a look at her, then hastily looked away before she could notice. How could someone look so pretty doing cleanup duty, even with sweat on her face?

The other boys looked much the same. Ordinarily, they took up space wherever they went, tall and loud and full of swagger. Now they stood with their heads lowered like children waiting to be told off, except for the glances they kept sneaking at Elise.

They'd noticed how pretty she was long ago. From the few times they'd spoken to her, she'd seemed gentle and kind, too. Compared with Kayla, she was practically in another world.

They'd thought that lovely face concealed a vicious temper. Now they knew better, they couldn't apologize quickly enough.

“We were wrong,” one of them said when Elise didn't answer. “We really hope you can both forgive us.”

Nora could only stare. She'd never seen these boys apologize for anything. Usually they were so arrogant. Now they were practically falling over one another to say they were sorry.

Elise finally knew why the class had ignored her. As for these particular boys, though, she had barely noticed them. She'd been concentrating on her studies. She couldn't even put names to several of their faces.

Forgive them? She hardly knew who they were. Refuse, and they looked ready to stay there until she changed her mind.

In the end, she nodded.

Relief spread across their faces.

“What else needs doing? We'll do it.”

Before either girl could object, the boys had taken their mops. They were strong, quick, and remarkably thorough. Soon the classroom was clean and all the dry desks and chairs were back where they belonged.

There was almost nothing left for Elise and Nora to do.

The girls stood to one side, watching with identical uncertainty. Wasn't this taking helpfulness a little far?

With an air of grave deliberation, Nora took a packet of snacks from her pocket and offered it to Elise.

They might as well eat while they watched.

The other members of their group returned from cleaning the sports ground. One smiled at them.

“You two are fast! You've finished already?”

Nora's hand stopped halfway to her mouth. She turned to Elise, her round eyes wide with disbelief.

Someone from their class had just spoken to them. Voluntarily.

Had she imagined it? People had always acted as though neither of them existed.

Elise was beginning to understand the change. News of what had happened with Kayla and Vivian had spread through the class. Like Logan, the others must have believed Vivian's stories about her.

They'd followed Kayla's lead in shutting Nora out, too. Now that they'd seen what Kayla was really like, perhaps they were finally noticing what that casual exclusion had done to Nora.

They felt guilty. Each in their own way, they were trying to make peace.

Elise pressed a finger lightly against Nora's forehead.

“You heard right. It really happened.”

She explained, and understanding slowly replaced Nora's blank stare.

Elise smiled. “Well, Nora? Are you going to forgive them?”

For once, Nora took her time answering. When she finally lifted her head, her chin came up with it.

“Do I look that easy to win over?”

They'd have to do a little more than that.

Vivian's room was full of cardboard boxes.

Julian's assistant had brought her home as soon as she left school, apparently unable to wait even a moment before getting her back to her packing. Pale enough to frighten anyone, she bit her lip and went on putting her things into the boxes.

Daniel stood nearby, watching every movement. Whenever she reached for something expensive, he repeated the same flat warning.

“The valuables belong to the Whitmore household. You won't be taking them with you. Please leave that here.”

Her hand stopped. He was watching her like a thief. Humiliation rose until she could scarcely breathe.

She put the item back.

She could keep her own bank card. But the costly clothes, handbags, shoes, all the valuable things in this room, Daniel would let her take none of them.

What use was the card? Her allowance had only been fourteen thousand dollars a month. With the way she spent, how was that supposed to last? Every payment was gone almost as soon as it arrived. She had less than fourteen hundred dollars left.

She'd heard that Robert Lawson's family wasn't well off. How was she meant to live?

The maids stood outside her door, watching coldly.

“Serves her right. Always looking down her nose at us, as if we were born to wait on her.”

“I said it ages ago. An adopted daughter was never going to matter as much as their own. Look at her now, being sent off with her tail between her legs.”

“And the way she used to order everyone around. Who did she think she was?”

“Some grand young lady with a houseful of servants. What century does she think this is?”

They'd held their resentment in for so long. Anyone who could get a word in did; the others glared at her from where they stood.

The remarks kept coming through the doorway. Vivian's face flushed and drained by turns, and tears gathered in her eyes.

They really were throwing her out.

Because of Elise.

She dug her fingers into the edge of a box, wishing she could crush Elise just as easily.

A little later, she struggled out of the house with her luggage.

A man in his forties waited by the entrance. His black jacket and trousers looked as though they hadn't been washed in a long time. Greasy patches shone under the headlights; his face and neck were deeply weathered by the sun. A cargo tricycle stood beside him.

Daniel had refused to let him into the house, so she'd had to carry everything herself.

She dragged a suitcase up to Robert and stared at the vehicle.

“What is that?”

“A cargo trike,” he said, with an uncomplicated air of helpfulness.

For several seconds she couldn't speak.

They were father and daughter by blood, but this was the first time they'd met. She'd barely acknowledged him, and he knew very little about this unfamiliar daughter. There had been no tearful reunion, no joyous rush into each other's arms.

She drew a breath.

“Why didn't you get a taxi?”

He'd come to take her home, and he hadn't even called a cab? He expected her to move with a tricycle?

The house was out beyond the city. Getting back would take ages. Just how miserable was life in this family, if they had to save money like this?

Robert waved a hand as though brushing away a fly, his whole face creasing.

“Why waste the money? We never take taxis. Too expensive. You can walk perfectly well. If I've got money to spare, I'd rather get Luke something nice to eat.”

Luke was her little brother. Eight years old.

Better to buy treats for him than pay for her taxi?

What kind of reasoning was that?

For a moment, Vivian's expression kept changing. Then she said coldly, “I'll call one myself.”

Robert immediately brightened.

“Well, that would be nice.”

As long as he didn't have to pay.

“Must be good,” he added, almost wistfully, “having money.”

When their daughter first went missing, he and his wife had looked for her for a while. Eventually, when they couldn't find her, they'd let it go. After their son Luke was born, Robert had put the missing girl out of his mind altogether.

When people suddenly turned up a few days ago to say they'd found her, he'd spent a long time wondering whether he wanted her back. His wife had cried so hard, begged him to bring their daughter home, that he'd finally agreed. He hadn't been at all willing at first.

Seeing the wealthy household she'd grown up in had changed his view.

She must have got quite a lot out of the Whitmores over the years. He'd been worrying about how to help Luke buy a home when the boy grew up. Perhaps that problem had just solved itself.

Vivian heard his remark. Her dislike of this father deepened.

While they waited for the taxi, she asked, “Where's my... where's Mom?”

“At home looking after your brother. She hasn't got time to come out here.”

Vivian was silent for a moment. Daniel had told her how their household worked: Robert went out to construction jobs, his wife stayed home. So, yes, her mother would be there with the boy.

“But now you're coming home,” Robert said with a smile, “things'll be much easier for her.”

What else was a daughter for, if she couldn't help with the housework? With another pair of hands at home, his wife could go out and find work.

“What do you mean?” Vivian's eyes widened.

“You'll help look after your brother. He's a handful, though. You'll have to be patient with him.”

She drew another breath, scarcely able to believe what she was hearing.

All her life, other people had waited on her. Now they expected her to look after an eight-year-old child? And Robert spoke as though it were the most natural thing in the world. As though daughters were simply born to do housework and take care of everyone else.

What sort of family was this?

This was where she came from?

Being thrown out of the Whitmore house was bad enough. What lay ahead looked worse.

Then she remembered something and forced her tears back.

Theo and Miles hadn't come home yet.

What would they do when they returned and found she'd been sent away?

She'd checked the weather in Antarctica earlier that day. In a few days, conditions were expected to settle and flights could resume. Miles would be able to come home soon.

She only had to stay at Robert's for a few days. Once Miles returned, she'd coax him into helping her. Even if she couldn't move back into the Whitmore house, he could give her money. She could find a place of her own.

She was not staying with Robert Lawson.

After the cleanup, Elise and Nora walked out through the school gates together.

The deep blue Maserati was waiting at a distance, Ethan standing respectfully beside it. Nora couldn't quite suppress a twinge of envy.

When would her family ever have that kind of money?

Elise waved goodbye to her. Ethan opened the car door, and only then did she see Julian and Adrian inside.

“You're both still here?”

She'd assumed they would leave as soon as everything at school was settled. Had they really waited for her?

Julian closed the laptop on his knees as she got in.

“We were here already. We thought we might as well take you home.”

Without quite realizing it, Elise began to smile.

Ever since elementary school, Mom and Dad had been too busy at the produce stall to collect her. She'd gone home by herself. There had been times when she'd envied the children with somebody waiting at the gate.

Now she had somebody, too. Two somebodies.

Both had come to take her home.

Adrian watched her looking toward Julian. Had she forgotten he was in the car as well?

“Ellie, I saw your memory notebook,” he said quickly. “Your handwriting's beautiful. I posted pictures. Have you seen them?”

He was the one who loved her most. He'd photographed her work and shared it with his friends. Julian hadn't.

Julian hardly cared about their sister at all.

From the front passenger seat, Julian gave a quiet scoff. He wasn't going to dignify Adrian's nonsense with a response. Posting to a feed was childish. Far better to keep the pictures and enjoy them himself.

Elise wasn't sure how to react. She took out her phone and opened Adrian's feed.

There it was, his latest post. Her notebook, beyond any doubt.

She scrolled. Several more posts about her. Every one full of the most extravagant praise.

It was embarrassing.

She looked up, ready to ask him to take the pictures down, and met his expectant eyes. He looked so eager for her approval that the request died in her throat.

“I... yes. I saw them.”

That sounded a little ungrateful. She tried again.

“Thank you, Adrian?”

He looked satisfied at last, and sent Julian a challenging glance.